Improvement in straw-cutters



C. T. FROST.

Straw Cutter.

No. 54.525. Patented May 8,1866! WITNESSES. /v VE/V TOR.

KWM

N. PETtRS. Pholol lhogrnpher. Washingmn. 0.6.

UNITED STATES PATENT O FICE.

CLINTON T. FROST, OF MEDFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

IM PROVEM ENT IN STRAW-CUTTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patept N 0. 54,525, dated May 8, 1866 useful Hay-Gutter; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a front end elevation of a haycutter constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a top view, and Fig. 3 a vertical section, of the same.

The object of my present invention is to produce, by an arrangement of the two knives, a drawing stroke or out very similar in its action to that of a pair of scissors, except that the under blade moves forward with respect to the lower one, thus making a decided improvement in the cutting-stroke over that of the scissors.

In the drawings, A denotes the trough or chute for holding the bay to be cut, it being supported in part at its front end by two vertical posts, a at, making part of the frame of the machine. Situated at the front end of the trough, and playing in vertical slots 11 Informed in the posts a a, are the cutting-knives O D, the knife O being hinged by a pin at its front end-to a movable fulcrum-bar, F, extending upward from the base of the frame of the machine. The lower knife, D, is hinged at its front end to the lower end of a bar or lever, G, turning a stationary fulcrum-pin, 1), projecting from the post a, the upper end or arm of the said lever Gr being hinged or jointed to the upper knife, 0, by a pin, 0, a short distance from its movable fulcrumbar F, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The knife D is to have a spring, (1, so applied to it as to throw it backward, and at the same time force the upper knife, 0, upward after each depression of the said knife (3 in the act of cutting the hay.

In operating with the above-described machine the hay within the trough A is to be introduced with the left hand between the knives O D and the upper knife depressed by force applied to its handle 0. This will cause the two knives to meet and pass by one another with a drawing stroke, and very expeditiously, and with the exertion of very little manual force, out the hay. On removing the right hand from the knife 0 the two knives O l), by the action of the spring (I, will be forced apart for CLINTON T. FROST.

Witnesses F. M. P. S'roNE, H. G. PARKER. 

